About Macbeth (an undoing)

‘Come, you spirits
That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here,
And fill me from the crown to the toe top-full
Of direst cruelty! Make thick my blood'

Hot on the heels of its international tour of New York and London, the 5-star smash hit returns to The Lyceum written and directed by Zinnie Harris, our award-winning Associate Artistic Director.

The retelling of the classic Scottish play puts the iconic Lady Macbeth at the heart of the story. When her husband returns victorious from the battlefield with a prophecy that he is to become King of Scotland, Lady Macbeth will stop at nothing to make their darkest ambition a reality. Ruthless and driven, unstoppable in her pursuit of power, yet she quickly descends into madness and despair.

By putting her front and centre, it begs the question – have we really heard the whole story?

Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh in association with Rose Theatre and Theatre for a New Audience present Macbeth (an Undoing).

Supported by Reid Hoffman,Kathy and Ned Hoyt, Michael and Tammy Thorson, Nancy Hale Hoyt, Inventure Capital LLC,Stephen W Dunn Theatre Fund,Sir Ian Rankin OBE DL FRSE FRSL FRIAS, David and Judith Halkerston,and Margaret Duffy and Peter Williamson.

Macbeth (an undoing) will be going on tour in 2024 to TFANA, New York and Rose Theatre, London.

Information

Press Coverage

★★★★★
"a thrilling reimagining"
The Herald

★★★★
"Clever, heartfelt and, in the broadest and most persuasive sense, feminist. Bold, innovative and bleakly comic"
The Telegraph

★★★★
"Zinnie Harris' audacious conjuring of Shakespeare’s Macbeth"
The Guardian

★★★★
"It's exhilarating to watch a dramatist who's so confident with her material, especially when she springs surprises with such a familiar story."
What's On Stage

★★★★
"masterfully traditional and refreshingly new"
"Nicole Cooper's outstanding performance feels like her high watermark so far."
The Stage

★★★★★
"a bloody good show!"
UK Theatre Network

★★★★
"a stunning vision"
The Scotsman, Joyce McMillan

★★★★
"revolutionary intrigue"
Corr Blimey

★★★★
"Zinnie Harris directs with a dagger-sharp, filmmaker’s vision"
Edinburgh Guide

★★★★
"bold, brutal, and brilliant"
The Wee Review

"It was the show in which, more than any other, the design helped create the tension, dynamism, and rhythm of the whole piece. Alex Berry’s array of fabulous costumes brought the production into the early 20th century, Tom Piper's perspective-altering, mirrored flats showed the many sides of Lady Macbeth while the chiaroscuro effect of Lizzie Powell’s lighting gave the whole piece depth."
Thom Dibdin, All Edinburgh Theatre. CATS Awards 2023.

Critics Awards for Theatre in Scotland 2023 nominations: